£30m boost for China’s first car factory in UK

As production of electric London taxi begins

THE Chinese car firm making the new electric London Taxi Cab has pledged to invest £30m in its Coventry factory that opens today.

In another major boost for the UK car industry, Geely confirmed its expansion plans as it unveiled the £300m factory, creating 1,000 jobs to build the ‘green’ version of the black taxi.

It is the first car factory in the UK for a decade.

The plant, in the village of Ansty near Coventry, will also build an electric van alongside the world’s first purpose-built, mass-market electric taxis as it ditches diesel. Up to 500 more jobs and £30m of investment could be added as a result of the additional electric van project that could see total production peak at 36,000 electric vehicles a year.

So far some 600 employees have already been taken on to launch the TX5 electric black cab, with 400 more jobs in the pipeline as production gets under way at the factory, which is the size of five football pitches and powered by solar panels.

London Taxi Company chief executive Chris Gubbey said: ‘This fac- tory will be a world beater. We’re very upbeat about it. It’s a national treasure. Today marks the rebirth of the London Taxi Company.’

Business Secretary Greg Clark and Transport Minister John Hayes will attend the opening.

The Government and Transport for London are expected to provide grants of up to £7,500, through the Office for Low Emission Vehicles to help cabbies buy the ‘green’ taxis.

As well as targeting the capital for sales, the London Taxi Company has also carried out trials in Paris, Berlin, Amsterdam, Barcelona and Oslo ahead of its export drive to Continental Europe. Hong Kong and Singapore have been targeted in the Far East, with Japan not ruled out in the future.

From January 2018 all new cabs in London must be pollution free and produce zeroemissions. By 2020 half the 22,500 black cabs in the capital will be electric as the current diesel ones are phased out.

Sales to other UK cities that use black cabs, including Coventry, will add to the customer base, says the firm.

Gubbey, 60, says even more investment is planned on top of the £300m already committed so far to the project, of which around £55m is the cost of the factory, £ 45m is product research and the remaining cash spent on developing the electric taxi.

He said Geely was fully behind the move, regardless of Brexit.

Geely, which also owns Sweden’s Volvo, previously held a 20pc share of the London Taxi Company, took full control in 2012 when it bought the firm out from receivership after previous owners Manganese Bronze went into administration.

Geely chief executive Li Shufu,

who is attending the factory opening, has written to staff giving his full commitment to the project in wake of Britain’s vote in June last year to leave the European Union.

He said: ‘ We do respect the decision made by the British people. I don’t think Brexit will have any negative impact on the relationship between China and the UK.

‘We can continue this relationship with Britain well into the future. The UK is a very attractive country.

‘ From Geely’s position we have no plans to change these plans for future investment.’